Download Elements of Culturally Competent Counseling

Professional Counseling Digest
ACAPCD-24
2008
Elements of Culturally Competent Counseling
Courtland C. Lee, Ph.D.
Cross-cultural counseling has become a major force in
the profession significantly impacting theory and practice.
As the 21st century continues to progress, it is increasingly
evident that counselors must become ever more competent
with respect to issues of multiculturalism and diversity.
This is underscored by ever-changing population
demographics that are resulting in an increasingly diverse
society. It is important to note that the diversity seen in
contemporary society is reflected not only along
racial/ethnic dimensions, but is evident in other aspects of
culture such as socioeconomic status, religion/spirituality,
sexual orientation, and ability status.
Given this reality, what are the elements of culture in
counseling? What is the nature of culturally competent
counseling in the 21st century? This digest is an attempt to
summarize some significant concepts that are important to
consider when counseling across cultures.
Understanding the Social and Historical Context
What is evident from the outset is that any counselor
who claims to be culturally competent must ground his or
her practice with a solid understanding of history and the
social movements which shape it. In the United States this
means understanding the history of multicultural counseling
as a discipline within the historical and social context of the
country immediately following World War II and continuing
through the last half of the 20th century. This can be
characterized as a period of great change in American
society that was spurred by a fundamental questioning of the
nature of social exclusion for many groups of people.
Groups that had been historically marginalized and
oppressed began to demand, as never before, social,
economic and political inclusion within the mainstream of
American life. These demands manifested themselves in
large-scale social and political movements that ultimately
forced significant changes to the country’s way of life.
Therefore, if counselors are to work with individuals from
diverse cultural backgrounds, they must familiarize
themselves with key historical events and social movements
that have influenced attitudes, values and behaviors of
groups of people.
Understanding the Dynamics of the Cross-Cultural Zone
A primary emphasis of culturally competent counseling
is to examine the nature of the helping relationship when
there are significant cultural differences between helper and
helpee. These differences have been conceptualized as the
cross-cultural zone (Lee & Diaz, 2009). A counselor enters
this space whenever he or she differs significantly from a
client in terms of cultural background. This zone of helping,
with its dynamic encounter of helper/helpee cultures can be
envisioned with respect to how counselors conceptualize
client or student issues, how they promote culturally
competent consultative relationships, and how supervising
counselors can influence the development of cultural
competency among supervisees.
What is extremely important to emphasize is the idea that
helpers who practice in a culturally competent fashion within
the cross-cultural zone must adopt a broader perspective on
culture.
In a culturally pluralistic society they must
understand that culture is more than just race and/or ethnicity.
Given that elements of culture are present in all aspects of
counseling, in their work with clients/students or supervisees,
counselors need to see the multiple dimensions of cultural
identity presented by those they endeavor to help. Counseling
interventions must be predicated on the realization that clients
simultaneously experience the world on a number of cultural
dimensions that include not only race/ethnicity but gender,
sexual orientation, religion/spirituality, socioeconomic status,
and ability status as well (Robinson & Howard-Hamilton,
2000).
As our society continues to diversify, many clients or
students seeking to develop a cultural identity based on these
multiple dimensions are often faced with difficulties in this
process. For instance, many immigrants to the United States
often confront acculturation challenges. Foremost among
these is maintaining a connection to their culture of origin
while adjusting to their new cultural environment in the
United States. The attempt to achieve this balance is an
important developmental process for many immigrants and
may need to be considered when helping within the crosscultural zone (Shin & Muñoz, 2009).
Counselors also need to be aware of how issues of social
class may affect the lives of clients or students. For example,
the debilitating effects of classism, a subject often taken for
granted in the counseling literature, may affect how some
clients perceive the counseling process, particularly if that
process is perceived by clients as representing the societal
values expressed in middle and upper-middle class
socioeconomic cultural realities (Bienvenue & Ramsey,
2006).
A counselor who is sensitive to a client’s or student’s
experience of any form of oppression or discrimination must
realize that culturally competent counseling is a vehicle for
client empowerment. Cross-cultural counseling as a process
for empowerment can help clients combat the negative effects
of marginalization resulting from any number of “isms”.
Empowerment is about helping clients refute the
internalization of an inferiority worldview associated with
their perceived subordinate status in societal relationships
with powerful others (Harley, Stebnicki, & Rollins, 2000).
Another aspect of empowerment often overlooked in
culturally competent counseling is the promotion of the
psycho-spiritual realm of personality. Spirituality and/or
religion are critical components to the well-being and
holistic health of many people. In many cultural contexts, it
is important to remember that there is little distinction
between religious/spiritual and secular life. Culturally
competent counselors, therefore, must be open to exploring
and including spiritual/religious dimensions within the
counseling process (Maglio, 2009).
In a culturally diverse society, counselors must also
understand that there is a multitude of helping sources
available to individuals. For many people long-standing
indigenous models of helping often have more credibility
than professional counseling.
When appropriate, a
culturally competent counselor will seek to form
consultative relationships with helping sources valued by the
client. By acknowledging the psycho-spiritual realm evident
in other models of helping, the counselor demonstrates
respect to the client as a multidimensional cultural being
(Lee & Armstrong, 1995).
Ethical Cross-Cultural Counseling Practice
Underlying all of the elements in the cross cultural zone
is the concept of ethical practice. The most recent Code of
Ethics from the American Counseling Association (ACA,
2005) features a major emphasis on cultural diversity. In
order to be culturally competent counselors, individuals
must be open-minded and recognize that valuing and
respecting cultural differences requires a commitment to
life-long learning and being able to make sound ethical
decisions within diverse cultural contexts.
Cross-Cultural Counseling Research: The Foundation of
“Best Practice”
Culturally competent counseling practice should evolve
from a solid foundation of empirical evidence.
In
developing a multicultural counseling research agenda,
consideration should be given to the following: developing
research questions where “culture” is operationally defined
as more than just race/ethnicity; exploring intra-group
differences as well as inter-group differences; using caution
in examining majority/minority comparisons in research;
exploring questions of multiculturalism and diversity in
counseling with qualitative as well as quantitative
methodology; and ensuring that implications of cross
cultural counseling research for improving counseling
practice are clearly articulated (Sheu & Sedlacek 2009).
Cross-Cultural Counseling Competency: The Journey of
a Lifetime
The development of cultural competency is a life-long
personal and professional journey. This developmental
process will be enhanced if counselors understand the unique
and ever changing dynamics of the concepts which underlie
culture and commit themselves to understanding their clients
as complex, multidimensional, cultural beings. It is hoped
that the elements of culture presented here will serve as
important professional markers on this challenging and
exciting journey.
References
American Counseling Association. (2005). ACA Code of
Ethics. Alexandria, VA: Author.
Bienvenue, C. & Ramsey, C. J. (2006). The culture of
socioeconomic disadvantage: practical approaches to
counseling. In C. C. Lee, (Ed.). Multicultural issues in
counseling: New approaches to diversity (Third Edition).
Alexandria, VA: American Counseling Association.
Harley, D. A., Stebnicki, M., & Rollins, C. W. (2000).
Applying empowerment evaluation as a tool for selfimprovement and community development with culturally
diverse populations. Journal of the Community
Development Society, 31, 348-364.
Lee, C. C., & Armstrong, K. L. (1995). Indigenous models of
mental health interventions. In J. C. Ponterroto, J. M.
Casas, L. A. Suzuki, & C. M. Alexander (Eds.),
Handbook of multicultural counseling (pp. 441-456).
Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.
Lee, C. C. & Diaz, J. M. (2009). The cross-cultural zone in
counseling. In C. C. Lee, D. A. Burnhill, A. L. Butler, C.
P. Hipolito-Delgado, M. Humphrey, O. Muñoz, and H.
Shin (Eds.). The elements of culture in counseling, (pp.
95-104) Columbus, OH: Pearson.
Maglio, A-S. T. (2009). Religion and spirituality as diversity
considerations: Implications for multicultural counseling.
In C.C. Lee, D.A. Burnhill, A.L. Butler, C.P. HipolitoDelgado, M. Humphrey, O. Muñoz, and H. Shin (Eds.).
The elements of culture in counseling, (pp. 148 – 162)
Columbus, OH: Pearson.
Robinson, T. L., & Howard-Hamilton, M. F. (2000). The
convergence of race, ethnicity, and gender: Multiple
identities in counseling. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Merrill.
Sheu, H-B. & Sedlacek, W. E. (2009). Cross-cultural issues in
counseling research. In C.C. Lee, D. A. Burnhill, A.L.
Butler, C. P. Hipolito-Delgado, M. Humphrey, O. Muñoz,
and H. Shin (Eds.). The elements of culture in counseling,
(pp. 226-241) Columbus, OH: Pearson.
Shin, H. & Muñoz, O. (2009) Acculturation: Context,
dynamics, and conceptualization. In C. C. Lee, D. A.
Burnhill, A. L. Butler, C. P. Hipolito-Delgado, M.
Humphrey, O. Muñoz, and H. Shin (Eds.). The elements
of culture in counseling, (pp. 57- 76 ) Columbus, OH:
Pearson.
Courtland C. Lee, Ph.D., is a professor in the Counselor Education Program at the University of Maryland at College Park.
ACA Professional Counseling Digests are produced by Counseling Outfitters, LLC, in collaboration with the American Counseling Association.
Copyright  2008 American Counseling Association.
Suggested APA style reference:
Lee, C. C. (2008). Elements of culturally competent counseling (ACAPCD-24). Alexandria, VA: American Counseling Association.